Legal Framework and Practice of the Protection of Environmental Human Rights in the Context of Armed Conflict

Abstract

The state of the environment in general and the negative effects of armed conflict in particular are issues to be addressed. The impact of these factors on human rights is obvious. The purpose of this article is to analyze norms and practice of international law to determine the possibility of the protection of environmental human rights in the context of armed conflict. The analysis of international legal norms shows a deficit of special rules providing for the protection of environmental human rights in the context of armed conflict. The volume of international law providing for the direct protection of the human right to a healthy environment is extremely limited. They represent the norms of "soft law" and are not legally binding or, in the most general terms, are enshrined in some regional instruments. The existing state of international legal regulation of this issue necessitates recourse to international judicial and non-judicial bodies. In this context, the practice of the African Commission on Human and Peoples Rights, Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, the European court on Human Rights, as well as acts adopted by the treaty bodies on human rights concerning the protection of individual human rights because of damage to the environment, may be relevant. The analysis of such practices and acts shows that the protection of environmental rights of the individual in the context of other human rights, namely: the right to life, right to adequate standard of living, the right to the highest attainable standard of health, right of ownership etc. In general, the protection of environmental human rights in the context of other human rights is possible in the conditions of an armed conflict, taking into account the characteristics of the latter. Therefore, this approach can ensure the protection of environmental human rights in the context of armed conflict.